Mary Berry is not in the show, the host is annoying and the contestants aren’t interesting at all. And after a pie made with peanut butter, chocolate and BACON ranked so well among the other pies I thought I should quit the show - if not wanting bacon mixed with chocolate makes me a conservative person so be it. I found that pie really disgusting, but Paul Hollywood adored it – I prefer something more normal and, to me, far tastier: his wonderful brioche, the one I have made several times already, this time filled with marmalade and raisins.

Marmalade and raisin brioche
slightly adapted from the excellent How to Bake (I bought mine here)

Put the flour into the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the salt and sugar to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other. Add the milk and eggs and mix on a slow speed for 2 minutes, then on a medium speed for a further 6–8 minutes, until you have a soft, glossy, elastic dough. Add the softened butter and continue to mix for a further 4–5 minutes, scraping down the bowl periodically to ensure that the butter is thoroughly incorporated. The dough should be very soft. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or for at least 7 hours, until it is firm and you are able to shape it.
Butter a 20x30cm (8x12in) baking pan.
Take your brioche dough from the fridge and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Knead 3-4 four times, then roll it out onto a 35x20cm (14x8in) rectangle. Spread the marmalade evenly on top of the dough and sprinkle the raisins on top. Roll it like a cylinder, beginning with the longer side. Cut into 9 slices then arrange them about 2.5cm (1in) apart onto the prepared pan. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and leave to prove for about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F.
When the brioche is proved, bake for 20-25 minutes or until brioche is golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.

8 comments:

Glad you enjoy the Great British Bake-Off and I agree about Mary Berry she's wonderful and here in the UK is regarded as a "national treasure". Paul Hollywood has been filling the gossip columns here lately with many people so upset that there are concerns that a very popular programme is going to lose many viewers.

Love your blog most of all the Baking blogs I subscribe to and was in the library on Saturday and saw a librarian copying some recipes from the great Annie Bell's latest book and recommended some of my favourites from the book and also suggested she take a peek at your blog!

Patricia, couldn't agree more with the bacon obsession. I mean, I do like bacon, but bacon icecream?? We have The Great Australian Bake-Off currently screening on our shores. The judges are Kerry Vincent and Dan Lepard. I will probably watch it, it seems ok.Love your brioche.

Just as an aside - I printed off your list of cookery books a while ago (many of which I already own) - husband saw it on the desk in my study and said no more! Having just decorated my study and I still have cookery books on the floor waiting to be recycled to Amazon - he was almost white with shock that more may take their place. Also when putting them back in the study I scanned the bar codes and started a new wish list on Amazon titled Cookery Books I Own to ensure I don't duplicate any - OCD I know! Anyway, do you do much baking from Dorie Greenspan, Rose Levy Berenbaum and Nick Malgieri books? Would be interested if you have and what you think. Best wishes Lesley

Hey, sweetie,I can imagine how your husband felt - we have the same problem at home, lack of room for my cookbook collection! O_O

Dorie's book is great, and the recipes never fail, but because of that "Baking with Dorie" event I kind of grew tired of the book. I use it very seldom. I have Nick's book on bread but haven't used it yet. Rose Levy has excellent recipes, her peanut butter financiers are to die for. The problem is that I have so many books I try to bake and cook from them all, instead of concentrating on just a few of them.Hope it helps!xx